January 6th Recipes

“SOUTHWESTERN 7-LAYER DIP”

8 oz softened cream cheese
1 c. sour cream
2 Tbsp taco seasoning (1 packet)
1 c. cheddar jack cheese, freshly grated (more to taste)
1 c. canned fresh or frozen corn kernels
1 c. canned black beans, drained & rinsed
1 14.5 oz can fire roasted tomatoes with green chilies (Rotel)
2 oz. Sliced olives, drained
2 green onions, thinly sliced for garnish, optional
Tortilla chips for serving.

In medium-sized mixing bowl, combine cream cheese with sour cream and taco seasoning. Pour cream cheese mixture into an 11×7 baking dish and spread evenly with a spatula. Layer ingredients as desired: cheese, black beans, Rotel, corn, olives, and green onions. Chill until ready to serve. Serve with tortilla chips.

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“IGLOO SALAD”

1 can (15 ¼ oz) fruit cocktail, drained

1 ¾ c. whipped topping, divided
1 can (11 oz) mandarin oranges, drained 2 ½ c. miniature marshmallows, divided
½ c. flaked coconut

In a bowl, combine the fruit cocktail, oranges, coconut, 1 c. whipped topping and ½ c. marshmallows. Spoon into 2 balls, one 5 ½” and one 3 ½” on a serving plate, with smaller ball in front of larger ball. Spoon out some salad from small ball to make a doorway. Cover with remaining topping & marshmallows. Makes 6 servings
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“EGGS BENEDICT CASSEROLE”

6 english muffins, cut into 1/2” cubes
2 (6 oz) packages Canadian bacon, cut into small pieces
1 1/2 c. fresh asparagus, cut into 1” pieces
5 slices baby swiss cheese, cut into thin strips
8 large eggs
2 c. whole milk
¾ tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
½ tsp. onion powder
½ tsp. paprika
½ c. shredded mozzarella cheese
2 green onions, chopped
2 (1.25 oz) packets of hollandaise sauce mix (made according to package directions)

Lightly grease a 9×13 baking dish. Spread half of the english muffin cubes in bottom of dish. Sprinkle half Canadian bacon and half of asparagus on top of english muffin cubes. Scatter swiss cheese strips on top of asparagus and canadian bacon. Repeat with remaining english muffin cubes, canadian bacon, and asparagus. In medium bowl, whisk eggs, milk, salt, pepper, onion powder, and paprika together. Pour evenly over casserole dish. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Preheat oven to 350 and bake covered for 40 mins. Uncover, sprinkle mozzarella cheese and green onions on top and bake uncovered for 10 mins. Serve with hollandaise sauce.

2 MINUTE HOLLANDAISE SAUCE (EASY)–recommended to use an immersion blender (stick blender)

1 stick unsalted butter (if using salted butter, don’t use salt called for in recipe)
3 egg yolks
¼ tsp. salt
pinch pepper
4 tsp. lemon juice

Place butter in a small pan and melt it over low heat. Don’t allow butter to brown and turn off heat as soon as it is just melted. While butter is melting, put yolks, lemon juice, salt & pepper in a measuring jug or bowl. Blend yolk mixture for a min until it lightens in color and is well combined. While mixer is still running on lowest setting, very slowly drizzle hot melted butter over egg mixture (if added too fast, it will make sauce too runny). As sauce combines move your beaters up and down through the sauce. Check the sauce, it should be slightly lemony & lightly seasoned. You can now add extra lemon, salt & pepper to taste. Add as required & give it a quick blend to combine. Serve immediately or place in bowl of body temperature water for up to an hour.
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“THIN MINT HOT CHOCOLATE”

1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. cocoa powder
pinch salt
1/3 c. hot water
3 c. milk (2%)
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. peppermint extract

Mix together the first 3 ingredients in pan. Add water and mix until dissolved. Bring to a boil and cook and stir for about 2 mins. Add in milk and extract. Cook until hot. Do not allow to boil.

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“SLOW COOKER SALTED CARAMEL HOT CHOCOLATE”

2 c. semi sweet or milk chocolate chips (milk choc will yield a richer flavor or you can use a combo of both)
1/2 c. caramels, unwrapped
4 c. milk
2 c. heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. fine sea salt (can leave out if you just want caramel hot chocolate instead)
optional: whipped cream, caramel sauce (ice cream topping)

Add all but salt to slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 2 hours. Stir. If chocolate chips or caramels are not completely melted, cover and allow to cook for 20-30 mins longer. When ready to serve, stir in sea salt. Serve hot with whipped topping and caramel sauce if desired.

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“CHOO CHOO CHILI”

3 lbs. hamburger
1 large onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2 (14.5 oz) can Italian style stewed tomatoes, undrained
1 (15 1/2 oz) can chili beans, undrained
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
2 15 oz cans BBQ pork
1 8 oz can tomato paste
1 3/4 oz chili pack seasoning
2 Tbsp. chili powder
2 Tbsp hickory flavor bbq sauce
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. onion powder

Mix first 3 ingredients together in Dutch oven. Cook until beef is browned; drain. Add rest of ingredients and stir well. Bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. Stir often. Makes 4 quarts

Flossie, Moberly

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KITCHEN TIP MINUTE
DISCLAIMER: Please note that tips I give are mostly ones found online, magazine article, cooking show, etc and have not been personally tested by myself.

Today’s tip is about Tomato paste. Most recipes only call for a small amount of tomato paste and generally the rest gets wasted because we either forget we have it or it goes bad before we can use it again. To save the remainder, you can carefully open both sides of can with can opener. Remove one metal end and discard it. Leave the other in place. Wrap the entire can with plastic wrap and freeze overnight. The next day, use the metal end to push the frozen paste out of the open end and discard can please make sure you do this carefully). Tightly rewrap unused portion and store in freezer up to 3 months, slicing off just as much as you need each time you cook (tip was found on www.marthastewart.com)